Sirius / XM -- how do you like it?

[emers382]

Originally Posted by escape artist

Hi: emers382... Our problem with Sirus/XM was it was on the car that stayed at home in the garage. Definately something wrong with that picture. Our 2016 Ram EcoDiesel has no CD player but does have Sirius/XM. It's better!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

It was the same with us when we had the car (sold in September) the truck usually stayed in the garage unless we were traveling.

One of the questions when I said to Sirius rep this morning that we are doing less traveling (well that was an excuse for wanting to cancel) she said what about general errands, and I explained that being in a small town we usually walk to do those errands.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Vermilye

While I agree with you for music, no matter what format you listen to, if there is no internet, there is no Spotify, Google Music, Apple Music or Pandora. While I have over 700 songs on my iPhone, I am more of a fan of talk radio while traveling than music. When driving solo, even a short drop of internet connectivity can dump the connection to the point where you have to mess with the phone to get it back.

When I expect to have a fairly solid internet connection (driving on major highways or in cities) I'll listen to one of my favorite stations using their app, but again, even a short drop can be a PIA.

I'm an NPR junky; and while the content for the limited public radio offerings on XM Radio is often repeated, particularly on the weekends, for me it is better than nothing.

If I really want to use Spotify where there is no internet, I just use data. It really does not seem to tax my data usage much, though it would only be around 10-20 hrs a month while travelling. I also download lots of playlists and podcasts for use without internet connectivity.

I also have almost 2,000 songs on my phone to use in a pinch, though since having Spotify I play them a lot less frequently now.

I also like talk radio when driving, especially on long hauls, as it keeps me more alert than music.

Had to look up PNR. Is it government sponsored radio like CBC here in Canada? CBC does play some great music, I just don't like that my taxes pay for it or their political views, but that might be getting a bit political so I won't delve any further.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Had to look up PNR. Is it government sponsored radio like CBC here in Canada? CBC does play some great music, I just don't like that my taxes pay for it or their political views, but that might be getting a bit political so I won't delve any further.

It's NPR (National Public Radio). According to Wikipedia:
While NPR does not receive any direct federal funding, it does receive a small number of competitive grants from CPB and federal agencies like the Department of Education and the Department of Commerce. This funding amounts to approximately 2% of NPR's overall revenues.

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Had to look up PNR. Is it government sponsored radio like CBC here in Canada? CBC does play some great music, I just don't like that my taxes pay for it or their political views, but that might be getting a bit political so I won't delve any further.

That's NPR. National Public Radio. Like CBC it offers INFORMED news and comment. I don't listen to CBC for the music. I listen for information on a wide range of topics.
Misinformed people ranting on private radio ( with ads ) does not appeal to me.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

Like CBC it offers INFORMED news and comment.

Informed, with a definite political bias, as does every radio station out there.

[Vermilye]

In the US, some NPR stations are talk only, others music only (mostly classical), and some have a mixed format. Some states, particularly out west tend to have statewide coverage by 1 or 2 stations with satellite transmitters (ground, not space based) around the state to provide coverage. Others, particularly in the northeast tend to have individual stations.

While there is some government support as Donna mentioned, and some corporate donors, the majority of the support for the stations comes from members. I'm a sustaining member of 2 NPR stations, WRVO, my hometown station in upstate NY, and KJZZ in Phoenix.

[steve dunham]

We listen to NPR almost exclusively and for the reasons Mr Baglo stated .
We have never found NPR to be biased but then again we’re not looking for it .
We also like listening to the CBC especially for news , highly informative with great in depth coverage .

[Ron in BC]

I didn't bother ever listening to my free time in my Ranger. I tried it in my new F150 yesterday and I thought the selection etc. was pretty good. At the end of my free 6 month trial I'll re-evaluate it. That kind of price increase would probably be a non-starter for me. After all, I can play a thousand of my very favorite songs off my phone.

Ron

[oldstation]

Ive had it for about 5 yr.best way to get good deal is go on their website, and u can find deals on it, I always get ti for $30 for six months, they have that deal now on web site, just renewed mine for 6 mo, $30 we bought a radio with built in xm and sent it to ETI when they were building our 21 ft and they installed it for us,, and alsoU DONT NEED TO HAVE AN EXTERIOR ANTENAE, BECAUSE RADIO SIGNALS GO THROUGH FIBERGLASS OK, WE JUST PUT THE XM POD UP IN THE CABINET ABOVE THE RADIO , WORKS GREAT, AND PICS UP FM AM OK TOO!

[Greg A]

I have been getting the Sirius for $30 for 6 months. If you don’t renew, within a week they send you the offers to renew for $5 a month. I was able to renew this month on a 12 month for $60 which is nice.

[Chris & Patricia]

We've used Sirius as it does offer reception in remote areas. There are a lot of channels, but sometimes not always what you want. Lots of people load up on music on their phone, but as we are somewhat news junkies, Sirius does offer CBC (for us Canucks) as well as the BBC world service and as noted, NPR. NPR does have a slight political bias, but maybe its in the direction that we want, so maybe we notice it less! However, NPR on the Sirius XM feed tends to have nationally focussed programs such as "W1A" rather than some of the local ones that you pick up with the local versions of NPR. But it works for us and we can listen to the news on the Great Basin Highway in Central Nevada, which has amazing scenery, but there can sometimes be 100 miles between towns.

We had an older model vehicle that didn't have a Sirius tuner, so we got a portable one that could plug into the aux input on the car audio and it had an antenna that attached to the vehicles roof magnetically. We bought an extra antenna to use in the trailer as well as a power cable with a USB end, so it would plug into the USB in the trailer and we had a portable speaker. It was a bitt fiddly, but was effective, the only thing we had to move was the tuner which about the same size as my old office blackberry.

However, we haven't been on the road for six months and cancelled the contract. But they are desperate to get me back and I'm sure I can get a great deal when i sign up again.

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by emers382

Reviving an old thread but thought for those perhaps getting new vehicles with a free subscription and wondering whether to continue, this thread might interest them.

I am proud of my long-lived threads. May the discussion go on forever!

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

I am proud of my long-lived threads. May the discussion go on forever!

And may you too, Mike! [emoji6]

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

And may you too, Mike! [emoji6]

Why thank you, Jim! And a Merry Christmas to you to!

[Mike Lewis]

For those of you contemplating buying a new vehicle, check to see if its radio has "HD Radio" capability. I've noticed that some public radio stations in the U.S. have additional HD sub-channels that play classical music 24/7. I think it's a nationwide thing sponsored by classical.org. UWUF in Pensacola, Florida is an example, and I listen to its HD sub-channel on a Sangean tabletop radio at home. I wish I had that capability in my Tacoma.

[rotateclockwise]

I have SiriusXM in my truck and used to have it in our previous trailer. When camping season ended, I called SiriusXM and told them to put the trailer account on hold. They paused the subscription until I called back and asked for it to be turned back on in the spring. They understand customers won't pay for something they aren't using.

I will never pay the full renewal price. If you call and tell them the value of their service isn't worth the full renewal price, they will work with you. I've successfully taken the approach that I won't pay more per month than I would for a streaming service. When discussing this with them, I've held firm at $100 a year for a medium package (no NFL) and they've always accepted. When calling, I've always been transferred to a second person. It seems like the first person in their call center can't discount as much as I want, but the next in line can. Their service is great for cross country trips, but only at a certain cost.

[Fun&Sun]

I’m not sure if anyone has mentioned but Sirius has a special on till December 31 in Canada $60.00 for a year. Go to Sirius12for60. There are add on’s that bring the bill to about $75.00.
Hope some of you will get this if you have been waffling.

[Mike Lewis]

Early in my career with the U.S. government I was tasked with serving as my office's rep for the Combined Federal Campaign, the civil service's organized charity. Employees could contribute to the CFC by either a one-time payment or through periodic payments deducted from their biweekly paychecks. In my training I was told to emphasize the periodic payments option, as "it's a small slice out of their paychecks every two weeks and it adds up to a lot of money that they'll never miss." Hmm.

So I've thought of this every time I've been tempted to subscribe to a service that I really don't need. It's something to consider for those on a budget.

[cpaharley2008]

Boy did you open a can of worms, it seems that when you designate a charity under CFC they do not disburse the funds. Found out after 25 years of donating to a local SPCA. I believe the CFC has been discontinued since revelations of the large and lavish salaries to various department heads. It seems only 25% of the money withheld was ever disbursed.
But your point of a little is never missed reminds me of when banks started converting to computers and balancing the books. A savvy programmer set up accounts for misbalanced customer amounts of less than $.02 to be deposited into. He was found out after the account approached $50,000 very quickly. His reasoning was that it would never be missed.

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Boy did you open a can of worms, it seems that when you designate a charity under CFC they do not disburse the funds.

Well, I guess my, um, less-than-generous nature paid off then. I gave the CFC only a one-time payment or two, and otherwise ignored their campaigns.

Regarding subscriptions and periodic payments-- I've never subscribed to cable TV, I have a Tracfone with no monthly charge, etc. I currently have only my water and electric bills, and of course, an Internet connection.

I'm not recommending this behavior to others, I just wanted to point out the sneakiness of subscription fees. They suck up a lot of money over time.